The invention concerns a hair styling device with two hinged arms able to move against each other for receiving and shaping a strand of hair. Each arm carries a shaping plate facing the other arm during the hair styling process. A shaping surface is in contact with the hair strand being styled while the hair being styled is pulled past these shaping surfaces.
Hair curls or waves can also be shaped with a so-called “straightening iron”. Such a hair styling device is customarily used for the straightening of hair and has two arms articulated against each other like a set of pliers. Each arm carries a shaping plate on its side facing the other arm. Normally both shaping plates are heated with one or more electric heating elements. Typically PTC heating elements and/or a flow of hot air is used for the heating of a shaping plate. Between the shaping plates there is a hair styling space, which can be opened or closed using the articulated arrangement of the arms. The shaping plates are outfitted with a level surface on their side facing the hair styling space. To straighten out hair, it is pulled through the closed hair styling space. The temperature applied to the hair help enable the straightening process. Such hair styling devices are also used to form curls or waves. This is possible because the arms of such a hair styling device are approximately semicircular or semielliptical in cross section and the heated hair can be wound around the outer sides of the closed arms. In such a usage, the straightener is used in the manner of a curling iron. The outer sides of the arms then function as shaping bodies.
The hinged connection of the two arms allows them to be moved relative to each other, while the shaping surfaces remain in a flush arrangement facing each other. If the shaping surfaces are moved away from each other by displacement of the arms, a strand of hair can be placed between the opposing shaping plates. The arms are then brought back to their closed position and shaping surfaces act on the hair strand placed between them. In order to curl or wave a strand of hair it must be pulled through the hair styling space by using the outer side of an arm. After inserting the strand of hair it is necessary to turn the hair styling device at least 90° (but usually more than 120°) while the strand of hair needs to be moved past the outer side of the shaping body in order to produce the desired styling.
Even though the outer sides of both arms of such hair styling devices can be designed as shaping bodies (so that after grasping a strand of hair the styling of a curl or a wave can be done regardless of the direction of rotation used), this has the drawback that the curling or waving has a different sense of rotation depending on the direction of rotation of the device. Normally the curling or waving effect on the many strands of hair should all be done with the same sense of rotation. A complicating factor in the manipulating of such hair styling devices is that when used on yourself the procedure is done in front of a minor, such that your own movements can only be seen in reverse image through the minor.
Starting from this prior art, the problem of this invention is therefore to modify the above mentioned hair styling device so that it can be manipulated for the styling of curls or waves primarily in regard to a styling with the same sense of rotation.